Cameroon - Brazil Preview: Selecao aiming to top Group A

Luiz Felipe Scolari's men will be hoping to emerge as group winners and rediscover their attacking verve against the already eliminated Indomitable Lions

By Stefan Coerts in Brasilia

Brazil somewhat surprisingly dropped two points against Mexico in their last outing as coach Luiz Felipe Scolari went for a slightly more cautious approach than in their opener against Croatia, with Ramires taking the place of Hulk on the right wing after the Zenit man was deemed not fit enough to start.

The Ramires experiment was not as successful as Scolari would have hoped, however, and one of either Bernard or Hulk is expected to start in the Selecao’s final group game, with the Shakhtar winger in pole position for a starting berth.

Two other players who have come in for criticism in the past few days following some underwhelming performances are midfielder Paulinho and striker Fred, with Hernanes and Jo waiting for their chance.

Nevertheless, Scolari has proven to be fairly loyal toward his players in his second spell as Brazil boss and he is unlikely to sacrifice one of the two ahead of the match versus Cameroon.

Cameroon coach Volker Finke, meanwhile, will have some serious selection headaches after two disastrous performances against Mexico and Croatia. The Indomitable Lions will be without the suspended Alex Song following his red card in the loss versus Croatia, with Jean Il Makoun possibly taking his place in midfield.

Furthermore, Finke is expected to leave out Benoit Assou-Ekotto following his on-pitch attack on team-mate Ben Moukandjo, and Henri Bedimo is likely to take his place at left-back.

Up front, Cameroon will be hopeful that star striker Samuel Eto’o returns to the fold after missing their disastrous defeat versus Croatia due to injury. Whether the experienced striker makes it remains to be seen, but Finke is hopeful his main dangerman will be available again.

Players to watch

It has not been Eto’o’s tournament so far as he missed a big chance in Cameroon’s opener against Mexico before being ruled out of their second game against Croatia due to injury. The experienced attacker could return to the starting XI versus Brazil, though, and will be determined to prove his worth one last time in what will very likely be his last game in a World Cup – and perhaps even his last ever for his country.

Neymar made the difference for Brazil in their opening win over Croatia as he netted twice and the Barcelona attacker was also his side’s main dangerman in the scoreless draw against Mexico. Much has been said and written about whether the hosts are too reliant on the former Santos star, but all the publicity will not stop him in his attempts to guide Brazil to a historical sixth World Cup win. Cameroon should not provide much resistance.

Editor's Prediction

After being held to a draw by Mexico on matchday two, Brazil will be desperate to set the record straight with a win over Cameroon to qualify for the knockout stage. Volker Finke’s men have made a very poor impression in their first two Group A games and it seems unlikely that they will improve much against the hosts. The individual quality of players such as Neymar and Oscar paired with a superb defence should prove enough for Luiz Felipe Scolari’s men to bag the full three points.